The Secluded Pond
by Casa Circe
Summary: ZUTARA WEEK 2018, Day Four: Turtleduck. Katara finds a family of turtleducks in a hidden pond in Ba Sing Se. But she discovers that she is not the only one who visits them every now and then.


**ZUTARA WEEK 2018, Day 4: TURTLEDUCK**

 _ **The Secluded Pond**_

 **DISCLAIMER:** _Avatar: the Last Airbender_ belong to Bryke, but Zutara Week belongs to all Zutarians.

 **NOTE:**

 _This was the toughest prompt to write for because I had no idea what to do with it. Everything I came up with seemed so inadequate._

 _I almost gave up and settled for a short and simple scenario set in Ba Sing Se, my favorite setting in the whole series. This is during Book Two, before anyone gets captured by Azula._

 _Enjoy!_

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Katara found the family of turtleducks on a pond in a secluded area of the walled city.

She had been wandering around Ba Sing Se, lost in thought, and hoping to find a quiet corner where she could find some peace. As much as she loved her companions, she longed for some solitude and now that they were in a relatively secure situation, she could afford to stay away from them for an hour or so.

The sight of the mother turtleduck watching over her young made the waterbender smile. Such a domestic scene gave her comfort and she found a rock near the pond where she could sit and watch them quietly. It was a soothing activity and one that that temporarily distracted her from her worries.

At one point, one of the turtleducklings ventured too far away from its family and looked slightly frantic so Katara raised her hand and gently guided the duckling across the water back to its mother. She wasn't sure if the mother realized what had happened but she certainly seemed relieved to have her child back. Katara found she had grown immediately attached to them and she regretted not having anything to feed them.

She returned a few days later with some pieces of bread but, to her surprise, found that they were already feasting on similar nourishment. Someone had found them and fed them, undoubtedly sharing the waterbender's fondness for the creatures.

Katara felt slightly disappointed that her secret spot had been discovered but curiosity overcame dismay and she wondered who could have left the food for the happily swimming turtleducks. She would return to the spot at different times but she never seemed to catch the turtleducks' mysterious benefactor.

Once, as she approached the pond, she caught a glimpse of a cloaked figure hurrying away, but by the time she reached the pond, the person had disappeared into the labyrinth of Ba Sing Se. Katara sighed and looked at the turtleducks, who were cheerfully nibbling at the treats their friend had left them.

"Oh, if only you could talk to me," she said with a smile, "I'm sure you'd have some pretty interesting stories."

But it became trickier to find time to visit her little friends as Aang and the rest of the group learned more about the politics and intrigue of Ba Sing Se. Still, every now and then, Katara thought of the mysterious figure who visited the turtleducks and wondered about his or her identity.

She had never spoken of the pond and the turtleducks to anyone in the group, somehow wanting to keep it her own secret place. But she knew that there was at least one other person in the city who shared this secret and she was desperate to know who this was.

One day, she finally got her wish. She had almost given up hope of ever meeting the other visitor when she chanced upon him sitting by the pond, quietly tossing small pieces of bread to the appreciative turtleducks. He was a young man dressed in the traditional green Earth Kingdom garb and he had his back to her.

She approached him carefully, and she inexplicably felt that there was something familiar about him. And though he could potentially be dangerous, Katara's instincts told her that she could trust him somehow.

Now that she had finally caught him, she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do or say. It was like they had been sharing the secret of the secluded sanctuary for weeks and if either of them spoke, some spell would be broken.

But before either of them could say a word, it was the turtleducks that gave Katara away. They had recognized her and greeted her arrival with excited quacks. Their other visitor stood up and turned around abruptly to see who had come and they both stared at each for a long time.

"Zuko!" Katara was the first to break the silence, trying to process what was happening, "What are you doing here?"

He shrugged and said sheepishly, "Feeding the turtleducks."

Stating the obvious seemed the only response he was prepared to give and somehow this made Katara laugh and roll her eyes.

"I can see that," she said, and there was another awkward silence as they watched each other carefully.

"I don't want to fight you," Zuko said suddenly, and Katara saw that he was sincere.

"Neither do I," she replied earnestly, before adding with a smile, "At least, not in front of our little friends."

Her remark seemed to provoke a small smile in the firebender, and that was the biggest surprise of all. He then looked away shyly.

"Maybe I should go," he said, turning to walk away.

"No, you don't have to," Katara protested. Zuko stared at her curiously.

She still had so many questions, and there were a lot of explanations to be made. And yet, she wasn't eager to get into all those complications just yet.

It was clear that they came to this hidden spot of the city to seek refuge from their troubles, so it didn't seem right for them to be deprived of the peace they sought.

"How about this," the waterbender suggested gently, "Let's just sit here and feed them together."


End file.
